Jigoku no fue

While conducting a crackdown on contraband cigarettes at Ueno Station, inspector Tetsuro Shibuya came across an envelope addressed to Misa Makihara inside an unattended backpack filled with loose tobacco. Misa was ostensibly an employee of Yamagishi Shokai, a real estate firm, but in reality she was the mistress of Yuzo Yamagishi, a cigarette bootlegger. Yamagishi’s contraband cigarettes were made from loose tobacco sourced from Misa’s uncle, Kisaku, in Ibaraki.

Directed by Fumindo Kurata, Kenjirō Morinaga, Jigoku no fue leans on a strong ensemble — Kuniko Igawa, Shin Tokudaiji, Michiko Suzuki — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about screen titles of 1949.